Well, well, well. We now have the equivalent of the House of Commons, our very own House of Representatives. Just about everybody has something to say about this and I am no exception.
My basic take:
Republicans thought that they were being cute by demonstrating that Democratic posturing and demanding a withdrawal schedule is ludicrous. Unfortunately, they let rookie Rep. Jean Schmidt open her mouth and in doing so, lost whatever rhetorical point they thought could be made. The GOP thought they were engaging in a bit of "put up or shut up" and instead just fucked up.
The Democrats, as usual going about doing all the wrong things for the right reasons, showed a little life, thank you, although they were only saved by Republican ham-handedness. However, I wish that the party would issue a fatwa prohibiting in perpetuity the umbrage of having one's patriotism questioned. It's stupid, tired and craven.
Rep. John Murtha is a stout supporter of our Armed Forces and deserves to be taken seriously. His counsel is valuable. However, he is stout enough to withstand a few feeble verbal attacks, isn't he? And just because he's a decorated veteran doesn't mean he's immune from criticism. I've followed the Congressman's career for some time, and I've never seen him back down from a fight. Why the sudden delicacy? Rep. Murtha is not Senator Kerry. He can handle himself just fine.
The GOP's problem is that the White House has abdicated the bully pulpit for an imperial chair and left the Republican leadership dangling. Merely repeating the word "irresponsible" strikes me as the equivalent of "inconceivable" uttered repeatedly by Vizzini in The Princess Bride. The president needs a Montoya to tell him, "I don't think it means what you think it means."
The brawl made for good TV, but if I was watching from a camp in Iraq, I would not be happy. Each party here is correct: the other side is playing politics. That's what they're made for, of course, and it's perhaps too much to ask anymore that the animals we have created act like human beings.
One more "on the other hand":
The House of the People is actually representing the nation. The fight, the raw emotions, the recriminations and insults illustrate in microcosm what is going on in the nation at large. The pain of the country is evident in the howls from the floor and leads, unsurprisingly, to no resolution.
Comments